Gaffney downs Spartanburg in playoff position battle

Friday

Feb 1, 2013 at 12:01 AMFeb 2, 2013 at 12:47 AM

Second place in Region II-4A is up for grabs after the Indians' 71-63 victory over the Vikings on Friday night.

By KEVIN MELTON kevin.melton@shj.com

GAFFNEY — The battle for second place in Region II-4A just got a lot more interesting.Gaffney jumped out to a quick 12-0 lead and held off a late Spartanburg rally to pick up a 71-63 victory on Friday night. The Indians, Vikings and Wade Hampton each now have four losses in the region, while Byrnes has five with two regular-season games left to play. Dorman wrapped up the region championship with a win against Riverside.“This evens us up with them,” Gaffney coach Mark Huff said. “We're trying to finish up in the top five. We're in the playoffs, but there's too many scenarios left to tell where we're going to be. It could be any one of us.”It appeared as if Gaffney (13-8, 8-4) was going to run away early. Shaq Davidson scored the first eight points to help the Indians gain a 19-8 lead after one quarter. He would finish tied for the game high with 15 points, along with teammate Tee Hardy.“Coach told us before the game that we had to come out here and play good because they are a good team, and we needed to get out to a fast start,” Davidson said. The Indians increased their lead to a 13-point margin, going into the half with a 35-22 advantage.“I thought our kids had a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of energy,” Huff said. “Shaq hit a 3 to start the game. I think we had two or three quick turnovers right off the bat and got the 10-0 lead. We played relaxed, I thought, and the kids played hard. It was a good team win for us.”“They were really great in the first minute and a half,” Spartanburg coach Hal McManus said. “Two 3s, an and-one and I blacked out I think a couple of times. It was 10-0 in the first minute and a half.”Gaffney stretched its lead to 56-36 on a free throw from DaQuan McNeal with 5:10 remaining in regulation before Spartanburg (13-8, 8-4) began chipping away. Ben Smith started it off with a 3-pointer, later followed by a 3-point play from Korri Dawkins to close within 63-56 with 1:05 to go. Tee Hardy responded with a 3-point play of his own combined with late free throws to help the Indians shut down the comeback. “It was real important to jump out to the quick lead,” Hardy said. “We had to do what we had to do.”Gaffney's Cobby McDowell and Kerry Williams each scored nine, while McNeal added seven.Spartanburg was led by Dvonta Stevenson with 12 points, while Mike Murphy added 11. Tavaris Scott and Zeke Woodruff each finished with 10 points.“(Gaffney) understood what this game meant, and they took care of their business tonight,” McManus said. “They knocked us off our feet really quick, and it took us three quarters to try to recover. But, I was proud of the way our kids fought back.”GIRLS — Spartanburg 57, Gaffney 42: Kionna Jeter finished with 19 points and 17 rebounds to lead the Vikings (13-8, 9-3) to the road win. Lee Lee Young also recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Kendra Dawkins added eight points and 13 rebounds.Gaffney (13-7, 7-5) was led by Shaquisha Dawkins with 19 points.